Rise of the Jaguar
by BagheeraShadow
Summary: The young prince of the Western Lands, faced with assuming the throne and defeating a neko army, must seek help from an eccentric demoness, a stoic general, and the mysterious warrior clans of a distant land. Set prev to Inuyasha.
1. The Prince's Task

Disclaimer: I totally own Inuyasha. Whoa, flying pigs!

Most of the characters in this fanfic are original, although their names were stolen from one of my favorite books of all time, Memoirs of a Geisha.

Chapter 1

"And now, to the next order of business..."

Sesshomaru idly tapped one long nail against the polished wood of the table that he and the other members of Inutashio's council were currently seated around.

Dear gods, I'm so bored, he thought, looking longingly towards the window. He wanted to be outside, maybe hunting, or sparring with another youkai, not sitting in this stuffy room listening to some droning councilor.

"Sesshomaru, would you care to oversee this assignment?" Inutashio's voice suddenly interrupted his daydreams. "I think as the heir to the Western Lands, it would be a suitable task for you." The councilors nodded their agreement. His father looked expectantly at him while Sesshomaru tried to recall what they had been talking about. Something about training females...

"I will do my best, respected father." Sesshoumaru said, trying to look as though he had been paying attention. He'd have to ask Umeko later. Umeko, like the other aides, sat behind Sesshoumaru, writing neatly on a sheet of paper. He snuck a glance backward, and she nodded at him, to let him know that she had taken notes and would fill him in later. The movement shook a few strands of glossy brown hair loose, which she absently brushed off her face and tucked back into the prim knot at the base of her neck.

"Very well, Sesshomaru. I will send my aide to help you out, so you are not overwhelmed by this project." Inutashio said. "You may leave now and begin with your work. I will send Chiyo down to your quarters later."

Sesshomaru bowed and left the room, inwardly fuming. Chiyo was a nosy, bossy, whiny bitch who thought too much of her station as the lord's aide. Umeko hurried out after him. He didn't say anything to her as he walked through the winding halls until they reached his quarters. Once inside, he shut the door with a bit more firmness than was necessary.

"Lord Sesshomaru," a voice greeted him. Matsunaga, his military advisor, rose from the desk where he had been working on some papers. He was a distant cousin of Inutashio, with thick white hair that dangled past his shoulders and piercing amber eyes. Relatively young and ambitious, he was a cunning and ruthless warrior and strategist. "I see the meeting went well."

"Oh, very well." Sesshomaru answered. "Umeko, what exactly am I supposed to be doing?"

"Your respected father gave you the task of overseeing the introduction of training the female inu youkai to fight," Umeko said. "You have four years to implement and carry out their training."

"Quite a task," Matsunaga commented.

Sesshomaru let out a long breath. "All of them?"

"Except the babies and the grandmothers-" Umeko replied, her topaz eyes calm.

"How?"

"Your respected father left that up for you to decide."

He paced around the room. "Umeko...we haven't had a female warrior besides Sayuri in five hundred years. Where am I supposed to find someone to train all of these females?"

If anyone in the court had heard him speaking so familiarly with his aide, they would have been shocked, but he considered the intelligent and kind hearted Umeko to be one of his few friends. She was also an excellent aide; she possessed an incredible memory and was efficient and precise in everything she did.

"To be honest, I don't know, Lord Sesshomaru." she said at last. "The only thing I can think of would be to speak with Sayuri herself."

"I'll go do that, then. Matsunaga. I want you to begin preparing a preliminary plan for the training."

"With pleasure. What are my resources?" the general asked. Sesshomaru smirked slightly.

"Why, my father's resources, of course. They are all at your disposal."

Matsunaga half-smiled, distracted by the challenge of the task at hand. "Very well." His considerable intellect was already focused solely on the plan he was formulating. "Oh, my lord. There is one thing I should warn you about." Sesshomaru paused, about to slide the door open.

"Yes?"

"Sayuri is famed for being...rather...eccentric."

"Thank you for the warning, but I think I can handle it." Sesshomaru opened the door.

Chiyo was standing there.

"Lord Sesshomaru," she said, bowing slightly. With one hand, she smoothed a wrinkle from her expensive kimono, and with the other, she held a few sheets of parchment and a writing tablet. Like Umeko, she wore her light brown hair pulled back into a bun. On Umeko, it looked crisp and professional; on Chiyo, it only served to emphasize her severe features.

Sesshomaru gritted his teeth and directed his glare at the floor. Umeko seemed to sense his discomfort, because she smiled at the other aide and said politely, "Lord Sesshomaru is on his way to a private meeting. If you wish, you may discuss things with Matsunaga while we are there."

Chiyo returned the smile, although it didn't reach her golden brown eyes, and there was a hard edge to her voice. "I'd rather go with Lord Sesshomaru and see things for myself." She turned to Sesshomaru. "Where were you headed, my lord?"

"I was on my way to speak with Sayuri." he replied. Hopefully without you, he added silently. Chiyo nodded.

"An excellent idea. I will accompany you, then."

Sesshomaru struggled to keep the scowl off of his face and shrugged. "Very well," he said, turning and striding out the door, Chiyo and Umeko close behind him.

Sayuri was gone when they arrived at her quarters, and they were told politely but firmly by one of her personal servants that she was out attending to some business, and that they should return in a few days.

Sesshomaru spent those days holed up in his room with Umeko and Matsunaga, feverishly trying to concoct a plan. They were all sharp minds with centuries of intelligence, strong teamwork, with all the resources of the Lord of the Western Lands to work with.

Currently, things did not look good.

Sesshomaru tossed the crumpled up sheet of paper on the ground behind him, where it joined the others.

"Large scale training camp? Too expensive. Private training for each female? Too few trainers. Assigning each female to a male warrior to learn the fighting art? Obvious problems. Bringing in female warriors from other clans? They won't share their secrets. How in the hells am I supposed to do this?" he demanded of a smoky glass paperweight, slamming it down on the desk and denting the smooth wood.

"That's your father's favorite paperweight," Umeko said absently, reviewing a list of all the resources they had. Sesshomaru glared at her and threw it out the open window with all his might. He received a stern look from Umeko, but it made a truly satisfying crash when it landed in the courtyard below. Matsunaga looked over at him and they both laughed, while Umeko mutered something that sounded remarkably like "Males."

"Sesshomaru." a low voice spoke from the door. "What was that?"

The three rose to their feet and bowed low to the woman who had just entered the room. Lady Murasaki was tall and elegant, with long ebony hair done up in an ornate style and cool blue eyes that took in everything and revealed nothing.

"It was father's paperweight...Mother." Sesshomaru answered quietly.

"You would do better to control your temper, my son." she said. "You are far too emotional." Sesshomaru nodded, trying to keep his face the blank mask she taught him. She looked at him for a few moments longer, then nodded her approval of his expressionless face. "Better."

She left as silently as she had come.

There was a long, slightly awkward silence broken only by the shuffling of papers.

"You could impose a heavy tax on the villages to pay for the training of their females," Matsunaga suggested wearily. "But eventually they would rise up in rebellion against you, and your father wouldn't be too happy."

There was a sudden knock on the door. Umeko opened it, to see Chiyo.

"Sayuri has returned," Chiyo informed them briskly. Sesshomaru had never been so happy to see her.

"Don't forget what I told you," Matsunaga reminded him as Sesshomaru stepped out into the halls after Chiyo. Umeko brought some papers over to Matsunaga.

"Here," she said, placing them in front of him. "I updated the list of resources. We got a new shipment of weaponry, listed here, and some of the villages have sent in their taxes, shown here. And these," Umeko plunked a heavy stack of records on the desk, "are the records you wanted. Everything I could find about female warriors."

"Thank you, Umeko." Matsunaga said sincerely, smiling up at her.

She returned the smile and hurried out the door to catch up with Sesshomaru and Chiyo. He sighed after she was gone. The room seemed emptier without her gentle smile.

Sayuri was sharpening her sword when they arrived at her rooms, and the grinding sound could be heard throughout the halls. "Come in," she said quietly when Sesshomaru rapped on the door, and the three of them entered.

Sesshomaru had seen her only once before at court, and she hadn't changed since then. Her sable hair was pulled off her face in a single braid and her plain gray robes were slightly faded. Her simple appearance, however, did nothing to diminish the warrior's grace with which she moved.

The female warrior didn't turn around, or acknowledge their presence, but continued sharpening her sword. Umeko cleared her throat and announced, "The Lord Sesshomaru,"

"I know who you are." Sayuri said, continuing her task. There was an awkward silence broken only by the rasping of the sharpening stone against the sword. Sesshomaru looked at both of the aides, and they only shrugged helplessly. "Sayuri," he started.

"I will only speak with a warrior," she interrupted coolly. "Which you are not, so there is not point in you trying to speak with me."

"I am a warrior!" he protested, anger coloring his tone.

"I have been training longer than you have been alive. You are not a warrior." Her statement had a tone of finality.

"I will fight you." Sesshomaru offered. "You don't scare me."

In a swift, fluid movement, the warrior rose to her feet, bringing the sword up and around in a blur. When the sword swept past the two females, they both cringed, but Sesshomaru forced himself to remain still, although his heart was pounding. The point of the sword stopped just in front of his eyes, and he stared straight down the blade into Sayuri's eyes.

One of her eyes was hazel, like many inu youkai. The other...was bright green.

For a moment, they stared at each other, challenging the other one to look away. Then Sayuri laughed, and slid her sword into her sheath. She bowed slightly to him, and he returned the bow.

"You have the heart of a warrior, Sesshomaru. For that, I will speak with you." Sayuri indicated that they should kneel at the small table while she prepared the tea.

"You know the task that has been given to me," Sesshomaru said. "You are the only female warrior we have, and I need your help to train these females." Sayuri poured the tea.

They sat and drank the tea, and at Sayuri's summon, a servant came with a tray of noodles and spiced meats. Umeko did her best to keep the conversation going, and despite himself, Sesshomaru found himself enjoying the meal. Sayuri was as good a conversationalist as Umeko and she told them entertaining stories about a tournament that she had just fought in. Chiyo simply sat there, ate little, and said less. At last, Sayuri rose. They all looked at her expectantly.

"I have two swords," she told them. "The sword you saw me sharpening is my first sword, the sword I trained with. I use that sword for practice, and for fighting if I will not have to kill anyone. My second sword is my killing sword. I do not have to sharpen that sword because it is never dull. If I wanted to kill someone, I would draw my second sword, my sharp sword. I could kill someone with my practice sword, but it would be faster and more efficient to do it with my second sword."

"What does this have to do with me?" Sesshomaru asked. She looked directly at him.

"I am the first sword, Sesshomaru. You need the second sword. If you want me to train the females, I will do so gladly, but if I were you, I would find the second sword."

"Who is the second sword?" he demanded, his patience beginning to wear thin.

"Do you know where I learned to fight?" she countered. Umeko began to clear the cups away, but Chiyo watched the exchange intently.

"No, but-"

"I traveled to a far off land, a land whose warriors were known for their fighting prowess. Female warriors. It was there that I studied the sword."

"Then what do you suggest I do?"

"Take your females there and train them." Sayuri said. "If you would excuse me, I must train now."

"Wait!" Sesshomaru exclaimed. "I don't even know where it is!"

"Neither do I." the warrior replied.

"How did you get there, then?"

"By accident. A storm blew my ship off course. I was trying to go to a different race of warriors." Sayuri recollected, looking off in the distance. "They are famed for pulling the living hearts out of their enemies," she added.

Sesshomaru ran his nails through his hair, exhaling in frustration. "How does this help me?"

Sayuri smiled. "Fortunately for you, I do know who would know where it is."

"Who?" Sesshomaru all but shouted. Gods, Matsunaga was right about her being strange, he thought.

"Taro the Mapmaker," she answered, naming a well-known wind youkai. "I believe he is still residing in that hole in the mountains."

Sesshomaru wanted to scream, or better yet, destroy something. Taro was, if possible, more eccentric than Sayuri and harder to deal with. Instead, he bowed politely to Sayuri, followed by Umeko and Chiyo.

"Thank you for your help," he said as calmly as he could manage. "I will still call on you for the females' early training, if you would grant me your assistance again."

She smiled. "Of course." The door slid closed.

As Sesshomaru took a deep, calming breath, he noticed Chiyo writing on her tablet of paper. "Umeko, how far is it to Taro's?"

"At least half a day's journey," Umeko replied. "Do you want me to begin making preparations?"

It was past midday now. The trip would have to wait until tomorrow. "Yes," he said. "I want to leave early tomorrow. Come back to my quarters when you are done." Chiyo turned to him.

"I will go with you tomorrow as well. Tell her to make preparations for me as well."

"Tell her yourself," Sesshomaru said. Chiyo scowled at him and repeated the instructions to Umeko in a condescending tone.

Umeko looked at him. He gave her a slight nod, and she hurried off to take care of the arrangements. Chiyo made her excuses and left as well.

Sesshomaru wandered through the halls, lost in thought, and found himself somehow on the edge of the grounds. The forest looked tempting; he could smell the scent of deer and other game, just waiting to be chased. A good hunt would certainly ease his nerves.

As he was about to dash off into the forest, the glint of sunlight on metal caught his attention: Sayuri was practicing with her sword. Curious, Sesshomaru perchd on the branch of a nearby tree to observe.

The warrior slashed and stabbed, her blade blinding in the bright light. Her speed was amazing; she was already flowing into the next move while she was completing the first. Some of the moves she did would have been ridiculous for anyone else; they would have left themselves wide open for an attack, but Sesshomaru had no doubt that her skilled blade could fend off the attack. Other moves were simply a personal test of skill and speed. Sesshomaru watched in envy. Although he was considered to be a fine fighter and excellent swordsman, he knew that he would be no match for Sayuri in a battle.

"My warm up routine," she called to him. He jerked in surprise. Seeing his confusion, she laughed. "You're not exactly inconspicuous with that white hair."

Sesshomaru smiled ruefully. "It's still growing out," he said. The length of hair among many youkai—at least, those who had hair—was a sign of their station. Since he had only recently become the official heir to the throne, he was allowed to grow his hair out down to his waist.

Sayuri slid the sword into its lacquered sheath and tossed it gently aside. "You said you would fight me this morning. Does the offer still stand?"

He grinned, despite the fact that she would probably pound him into the ground, and jumped

down. Sayuri waited patiently as he took off his heavy outer robes, wearing only his undershirt and pants.

The two opponents faced each other, claws raised, eyes locked. As a male, Sesshomaru was bigger and stronger, but he didn't have her speed, or her experience, which more than made up for his advantages.

It would be an interesting battle.


	2. Fighting Sayuri

Disclaimer: uyasha-inay, adly-say, oes-day ot-nat elong-bay o-tay e-may. Avari-jay is-ay ine-may, itches-bay!

Chapter 2

Sayuri attacked first, slashing at his chest. Sesshomaru, anticipating the strike, blocked her arm with his, then turned the block into a throw. She didn't try to free herself from his more powerful grip, instead, she shifted her weight and kicked backwards as he threw her, striking him hard in the chest.

Sesshomaru was knocked backwards by the force of the blow, but he shook it off and launched himself forward. Sayuri leapt up and came slashing down on his back, scoring first blood and earning a harsh expletive from Sesshomaru.

Angered, Sesshomaru whipped around and managed to gash her shoulder, causing her to let out a yelp of surprise.

She flipped backwards and landed on her feet. "Not bad, young warrior. But you were merely lucky." Sesshomaru arched one eyebrow, and the battle began in earnest.

The two slashed and clawed at each other. Sayuri landed many more hits than he did, but the power behind his strikes made them much more devastating on the rare occasions when he did manage to land one on her.

Covered in blood and gasping for breath, he looked up just in time to see the female coming at him. Sayuri crashed into him again, this time snapping his head to the side with a blow from the back of her hand. With the last bit of his energy, he swung at her to drive her back and dove forward, catching her about the waist and crashing her to the ground. The impact knocked the wind out of her, and in an instant, his claws were at her throat.

"Surrender," he gasped out. She smiled slightly.

"You," she replied. He glanced down to see her claws poised directly over his heart. She chuckled, coughing up some blood. The last hit had hurt her more than he thought. "You are defeated," she wheezed. "If this was a real battle, I would have taken out your heart."

Embarrassed and a bit angry at the defeat, Sesshomaru got to his feet and offered her a hand up. She accepted it, and clapped him (gently) on the back once she was up.

"I haven't fought claw to claw in a while," Sayuri teased. "I must be getting out of practice if a mere pup can throw me down like that."

"I am not a pup." he growled.

"You fought well, Sesshomaru," she said seriously. "You show much potential, and I would be honored to teach you what I know, if you desire to learn."

Sesshomaru tried to keep the proud grin off his face. "Really? That would be-" he stopped babbling and bowed. "I would be honored as well."

"Then we will meet out here at dawn tomorrow morning." she said. He was about to nod his agreement when he remembered.

"We're going to visit Taro the Mapmaker tomorrow," he told her. Sayuri shrugged.

"Then the day after tomorrow." She gathered her things and headed back to the castle.

Sesshomaru retrieved his robes from where they'd been flung on the ground, and returned to his quarters.

He was unpleasantly surprised to find Chiyo waiting for him, in the small room in front of his quarters that he used to receive people.

"Do you want something?" he asked rudely. She frowned at him.

"Your royal father wants me to inform you that he was not pleased with your absence at dinner tonight."

"I was sparring." he muttered.

"So I see." Chiyo said disdainfully. "I made my report to your father, and he thinks, as I do, that your plan to find these female warriors is both foolish and a waste of time, and you would be better served preparing a more _realistic_ tactic."

"Your report?" Sesshomaru asked. So that was what she had been writing. Chiyo looked superior.

"Part of my job, in addition to advising you, is to…observe you in the planning and execution of a major assignment and report back to your father, so he can watch your progress." She rose and turned to leave. "Oh, and Sesshomaru? I won't leave anything out."

She slid the door shut.

Sesshomaru took several deep breaths. That bitch is so annoying, he thought angrily, as he drew the bath. Part of the reason her words stung so much, he admitted to himself, was that he had wondered the very same thing. Sayuri claimed she had learned to fight there, but she was a bit odd, to say the least.

And then there was the mystery of Sayuri's mismatched eyes. He had seen only two other inu-youkai with different colored eyes, which wasn't what bothered him, but inu-youkai simply did not have green eyes. Ever. There were some who had hazel eyes that could pass as a shade of green but none with the same brilliant green as Sayuri.

He sat in the bath until the water was cold, lost in his thoughts. When he finally got out, dried himself, and dressed, it was well past dark.

Walking to his room, he saw a small piece of paper slid under the door. It was a note, in Umeko's neat, precise handwriting.

_Preparations have been made, and we will leave at dawn tomorrow. Matsunaga has decided to accompany us._

_-Umeko_

Matsunaga was undoubtly coming for the chance to needle Chiyo, whom he despised. Sesshomaru smiled to himself. Perhaps the trip would not be so bad.

* * *

"So how exactly do you plan to proceed if Taro actually has a map to this place?" Chiyo asked him. Sesshomaru scowled.

"I would bring some of their warriors over here to aid in the training of our females."

"How many?"

Sesshomaru was thrown off by the question. "Ah…what?"

"How many warriors would you bring? Where would you house them, how would you feed them, how would you have them conuct the training?" Chiyo fired off the questions like arrows. Sesshomaru struggled for an answer, but Umeko thankfully interrupted.

"Lord Sesshomaru has confided in me that he thinks it would be bold to plan such things ahead without knowing anything of the warriors."

"Have you spoken to Sayuri, then?" Chiyo turned to Sesshomaru, shutting Umeko out of the conversation.

"I have spoken with her and she has agreed to meet me tomorrow morning to teach me more." It wasn't a complete lie, but it was enough to satisfy Chiyo. She began writing something down on the papers.

"I understand that you work for Lord Inutashio now?" Matsunaga asked Chiyo. She nodded smugly. "Ah, good. Inutashio was always so overworked. It's good that he has a secretary now, even if you are just a novice." The smug look was replaced by an angry glare, and her face was turning slightly red.

"I am his _aide_, not his secretary, and I have been an aide for almost a decade now." she said snappishly. Matsunaga lifted his eyebrows.

"Only a decade? I have been working for Inutashio for at least twenty years."

"Yet you were assigned to work for his son," Chiyo said sweetly.

"Oh, I consider it a high honor." Matsunaga replied.

"Oh, you do?"

"Yes. Inutashio, with his great wisdom, has plenty of lesser men to advise him. His son, however, lacks the experience of an older warrior and thus has greater need of a wiser, more intelligent advisor. Is that the way things work with aides, as well?" he inquired in the politest of tones, surreptiously winking at Umeko, who grinned as Chiyo turned a deep red and sputtered in anger. She didn't talk for the rest of the journey, leaving the other three to converse (more or less) freely on the back of the flying youkai who was taking them to Taro's hole.

* * *

Taro's Hole was exactly that, a massive hole in a mountain surrounded by a barrier of swirling winds. They had to wait a few moments before Taro lowered the barrier enough for them to land, and then they stepped into the Hole.

"Come in, come in, come in!" a voice greeted them from above. The wind youkai was seated on a cushion of air, his silky hair blowing gracefully in a breeze that circled him alone. Taro floated down and landed gently before them. Except for Matsunaga, who had met the youkai before, they all stared at him, Sesshomaru in surprise, Umeko in curiosity, and Chiyo in irritation.

Slender with pretty, effeminate features, the youkai looked anything but powerful. He was wearing a brightly colored, if rather garish kimono, and a crown of glass beads.

"Well, if it isn't Lord Sesshomaru! I haven't seen you since you were thiiiiis high." he held his hand near his knee. "What brings you all the way out here?"

"We need a map to the land where Sayuri the warrior journeyed and trained." Sesshomaru said. I…am…ice...he repeated to himself. It was a personal mantra to help him control his temper, which was flaring more and more often these days.

Taro pursed his lips and tapped one finger against his chin. "Hmmmm…I'd have to go look for that one. You must be hungry, so why don't you go get something to eat, while I go look for that map, hm?" He began rising in the air again, singing to himself. "Maaaaappp…wheeere did I put youuuuuuu?"

Ice…Sesshomaru reminded himself.

"Food's in the pantry! Help yourself!" Taro called down to them.

They all looked at each other. Sesshomaru sighed and looked around. Seeing nothing but weathered stone walls, he yelled,

"Taro, where is the pantry?" The wind youkai's laughter echoed in the Hole.

"Oh, that's right! Silly me…" Far, far above them, some doors swung open. An assortment of food floated down to them, as well as a table and some dishes. Sesshomaru and Matsunaga had to run about, catching them all before they hit the ground, while Chiyo looked on impatiently.

Taro apparently liked fish, because there was a lot of it. Fish in red sauce, fish in white sauce, grilled fish, fish roasted with nuts, fish stuffed with mushrooms and breadcrumbs, fish dried with salt, and, the main dish, spiced fish over a bed of greens.

"Fish, anyone?" Umeko asked, kneeling at the table, and indicating for the rest of them to sit down. As usual, Chiyo simply sat off to one side and nibbled while the rest of them ate and talked.

Towards the end of the meal, a strong wind blew up, nearly sending their dishes off the table, and Taro suddenly dropped down next to them.

"I found it!" he trilled. With an extravagant gesture and a gust of wind, he cleared the table--although he was careful not to spill the fish--and spread the map out before them.

It was slightly yellowed but still clear. There was a dotted line running through an ocean represented by some wavy lines, connecting their land, denoted as "Here", to another one labeled "There".

"Ah…" Sesshomaru said hesitantly. "Is that all?"

Taro scowled at him. "What's wrong with it?" he asked. "It's perfectly clear; a pup could read it. You are _here_, you want to go _there_, so you go _this way_." He traced the dotted line.

"It is rather…simplistic." Matsunaga observed, studying the map. "Perhaps you could tell us what kind of terrain we will be traveling through?"

"Well, those are waves," Umeko said, pointing to the wavy lines.

"Actually, that's just ink I spilled," Taro admitted. Chiyo let out a sound between a laugh and an exasperated huff.

"Isn't this appropriate? A badly drawn map to a mythical island of imaginary female warriors. As long as we're at it, why don't we search for the Spring of Youth, or the city of gold?" she scoffed.

Taro turned slowly to look at her, the cheer gone from his demeanor. The air turned cold as the winds picked up and swirled around them.

"The map," he said coldly, "will guide you to the lands you seek. It does not matter whether you believe they exist or not, Chiyo, but the female warriors are very real."

"You have seen them?" Sesshomaru asked, his excitement betraying itself in his voice. Taro smiled at him, his anger forgotten.

"Oh yes, several times. They are quite remarkable." he told the younger youkai. "If you would like, I could tell you what I know of them." Sesshomaru and Matsunaga both nodded eagerly, and Taro motioned them away from Chiyo. Umeko cast a worried glance at Chiyo, who was writing on her tablet and casting dark looks toward the three males.

"The female warriors," Taro began, "don't really welcome outsiders in, so this is mostly what I have observed."

"Wait, you've never spoken with them?" Sesshomaru interrupted.

"I have tried," Taro replied, "but they don't speak our language, and they're rather hostile."

"Wonderful," Matsunaga muttered. "And I don't suppose that they are eager to give up their fighting secrets?"

"Oh, they'll train anyone they believe to have potential. That's how dear Sayuri learned, of course. They are completely dedicated to fighting. In fact, their entire lives revolve around it: everything they do, from training, to hunting, to playing and sleeping, is in some way connected to the constant improvement of their skills. They're really almost obsessive." he added.

Sesshomaru couldn't think of anything intelligent to say to this, so he just nodded for the wind youkai to continue.

"They're youkai, every one of them, although they're all really strange types that I've never seen before. What I think is that they're a compilation of many different clans, who are all dedicated to the fighting arts. Like…" he trailed off, looking for a good comaprison.

"Like an army?" Matsunaga offered.

"I suppose…" Taro said doubtfully. Then he brightened. "Like a circus troup!"

"A circus troup?" Sesshomaru repeated. The wind youkai nodded vigorously.

"Yes, exactly. A circus troup is made up of actors, and musicians, and acrobats, and clowns, and dancing girls, and magicians, and-"

"Yes, yes, we get the picture." Sesshomaru interrupted.

"They are all performers and entertainers, just of different types. They share a common goal, a single dream-"

"To make money?" suggested Matsunaga. Taro glared at him.

"To lift people from the bleakness of the mundane and brighten their lives with the sun of their creative vision."

"To entertain," Sesshomaru summed for him.

"Well, if you want to reduce a lofty and noble goal to a few words, then yes," Taro huffed. "I always wanted to be in the circus," he told them sadly. He glanced outside. "You'd better get going if you're going to be home before tomorrow."

"There's more I wanted to ask you," Sesshomaru protested. Taro was pushing them towards the exit with a powerful wind.

"That's really all I know." he said. "You could try asking Sayuri, but she's sworn to secrecy, or so she claims. She might tell you more than me, because you're her lord's heir, and also you didn't try to borrow her sword-"

"Is she that possessive of the sword?"

"I didn't exactly tell her I was borrowing it." Taro patted Sesshomaru on the head and slipped the map into his hands. They climbed aboard the flying youkai and Taro waved to them. "I'll give you a nice wind to speed you on your way!"

"But why did you want her sword?" Sesshomaru called down to Taro. He fixed the inu youkai with a patronizing look, and yelled back,

"Because I would look dashing with a sword!" The wind youkai waved an enthusiastic goodbye as they sped off to Inutashio's palace.

* * *

A/N: Yes, there is a line blatantly stolen from Mulan. 


	3. Training and Planning

Disclaimer: I do not own either of Rumiko's 2 characters that have thus far appeared in this fanfic.

Chapter 3

Sesshomaru sighed as he stumbled through the doors of his quarters and all but collapsed on his bed. What a trip, he thought. Taro's strong wind had blown them right into a large group of crow youkai, and he and Matsunaga had been obliged to fend them all off, as well as protect the females. Admittedly, they had both been a tiny bit slow when it came to diverting the crow youkai's attacks on Chiyo…

Hopefully that would discourage Chiyo from traveling with them in the future, although more likely than not, it would only earn him a bad report. _"Your son was careless enough to let us fly right into the center of a large gathering of crow youkai…"_ he could imagine her saying in that whiny voice of hers to his father. Sesshomaru closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

What seemed like only a few moments later, cold water splashed in his face. Sputtering angrily, he opened his eyes to see Sayuri standing over him, a slight smirk on her face and a half-empty pail in one claw.

"Good morning, your highness," she said sweetly. "Your training as a true warrior begins today."

"You…you…" Sesshomaru searched for an expletive foul enough to describe the kind of person that would wake an inu-youkai up by throwing cold water in his face, found none, and settled for growling menacingly.

"I will give you exactly half an hour to dress and eat. Meet me out on the field where we sparred the other day." Sayuri replied cheerfully, and sauntered out of his room before he could retaliate.

* * *

"No! Not like that! Like this!"

Sayuri's frustrated snarl cut through the cool morning air as she stomped over to Sesshomaru and yanked the sword away from him. Their tempers were both frayed from the first few hours of his training. After the first quarter hour, Sayuri had let out a long breath and announced that he would have to be completely retrained from the style that he had learned.

"What was that?" she had demanded.

"It was the block-strike combination," Sesshomaru said through gritted teeth. She shot him a contemptuous look.

"That," Sayuri snapped, "was not the block-strike. That was a woodsman chopping down a tree. What is all this," she swung her own sword wildly around, imitating his movements. "this hack and bash nonsense? Do you think you are holding an axe? Because let me assure you right now that what you hold in your hands is a sword, not an axe."

And that had only been the first hour.

"You are the most irritating pupil I have ever had," Sayuri complained, demonstrating the combination after he had butchered it again.

"You are the most infuriating bitch I have ever met," Sesshomaru shot back, trying to copy her exact movements.

Around noon, she finally called the training to an end.

"You're…to be honest, you're not exactly doing well, but I think you are beginning to grasp the basics." Sayuri told him. "You will improve." She flopped down on the grass and patted the spot next to her. He sank down next to her.

"I was much worse when I first started." she said suddenly. "The warriors told me to give up the fighting arts and try something that didn't put my life at risk. They said if I was ever in real combat, my opponent would slice me to tiny pieces between my first and second swing.

The fighting style of the inu youkai is sheer brute power, your strength against your enemy's. It only works as long as your opponent isn't too much stronger than you. Against a truly powerul youkai, you would die."

"Then how am I supposed to fight?" Sesshomaru asked somewhat irritably.

"By matching your strength against his weakness. That is what I'm _trying_ to teach you."

"Is that how the warriors of…what is that place called, anyway?"

"Roughly translated? The rainy place of great trees where we play _Ja'La'Hai_. It can also be translated as 'The kingdom of warriors'."

"Jalahai?" Sesshomaru asked, stumbling over the unfamiliar word.

"_Ja'La'Hai_. 'The Game of Life'. It is…hard to explain."

"Try," he urged her. Sayuri stretched out on her back, and stared up at the clouds.

"I'm bad at explaining …there are two or three attacking teams, and they try to retrieve the ball from the guarding team, and whoever has the ball in their possession when the game ends wins."

"That doesn't sound too complicated," Sesshomaru said.

"There are three rules that apply in every game: You can't kill anyone, you have to play by the rules, and the rules are different for each game. Other than those three, they change the rules for every game. The length of the game, the way they are allowed to fight for possesion of the ball, how the ball must be carried, how many players are allowed, what weapons will be used-"

"Weapons?" Sesshomaru asked. Sayuri nodded.

"Most players go into the game fully armed, as they would for battle."

"Did you ever play?"

"Only once, right before I returned. I had been in training for a decade, and I was just barely good enough to be considered a novice at the game." She half-smiled at the memory. "It was their farewell gift to me, to allow me, an unworthy trainee, to play _Ja'La'Hai_. They even allowed me to make the rules."

She was silent for a bit, and Sesshomaru thought she wouldn't say anything else, but at last, she said, "It is called the Game of Life for many reasons…to play that game is to truly understand their way of life...but also, once you play, you will never feel more truly alive than when you are in the game. There is no way I could describe it to you. If I ever get the chance, I will return there, and play that game until I am too old to draw a blade."

"My advisor, Matsunaga, wishes to speak with you. He is waiting for us in my quarters." Sesshomaru told her.

She stood, offered Sesshomaru a hand to his feet, which he declined, and brushed off her clothes. "I will wake you tomorrow morning."

"Is that how they woke you?" he asked grumpily. She laughed.

"No, their way was much worse."

"How so?"

"I often awoke swimming in the river among flesh-eating fish."

* * *

Sesshomaru returned to his quarters thinking about what Sayuri had told him. He was trying to understand these people, to see how to approach them, and if they would help him, but the more he learned about them, the more he was beginning to think it would never work.

Umeko and Matsunaga were sitting at a table covered in papers talking quietly when Sesshomaru and Sayuri entered the room. Umeko was skimming pages of a dusty tome and reading the occasional bit of information out loud while Matsunaga scribbled notes on a piece of paper.

"Lord Sesshomaru, Lady Sayuri," Matsunaga said, bowing to both. "Lady Sayuri, I need to ask you abou these people. Umeko and I have been working on a tentative plan for accomodations and training, but we need to know more about them."

"What do you want to know?" Sayuri asked, sitting next to them.

"You speak their language, correct?" he replied.

"Yes."

"Then would you be accompany and translate for us?"

"That…depends." Sayuri said, frowning a little. "What exactly are you planning?"

"We're going to go to this country with a force of warriors, including yourself, and convince a group of these female warriors to return to Japan with us and train our females. They will be compensated for their time, treated with the highest respect, and we will return them to their country when they have completed the training." Matsunaga told her confidently.

"They'll never agree to that." she snorted. "Never."

"Well…then we will persuade them. One way or another." He was taken aback when Sayuri burst out into mocking laughter.

"You think you could possibly kidnap even one of them?" she snickered. "Then only way you could possibly kidnap one is if you caught them unaware at the edge of the beach and hit them over the head with a rock, then set sail immediately before her clan could come after you and annihilate your entire force. And even if somehow, you did manage to do that, you could only take one, because two together would destroy your ship."

"Could one female train all of ours?" Matsunaga asked Sayuri as soon as she calmed down. She considered it for a long moment, then said slowly,

"I have heard of it being done once before. A lone warrior was captured by a barbarian clan. Before they managed to capture her, she slew a great number of their men. For this, many would have put her to death, but this clan was so amazed and impressed by her fighting skill, they begged her to teach their people to be strong like her. She trained an entire clan, every person able to hold a blade, young and old, male and female alike."

"How was she able to do that?" Umeko asked in wonder. Sayuri turned to her.

"She was from a clan that had…powers. It enabled her to teach them many things in a short time. It isn't a very rare power, among their kind. Most of the warriors I encountered had the power to some extent." They all sat in silence, thinking.

"Matsunaga and I have also come up with an alternative plan, if this one should fail." Umeko said, breaking the silence.

"And that is…?" Sesshomaru asked.

"We've contacted other youkai clans, and some of their females were interested in helping us. Sayuri could train them, and they could help us train the rest of our females." she replied, as the door slid open. It was Chiyo. Ignoring the frigid looks she was receiving from Sesshomaru and Matsunaga, she marched over to the table and sat down.

"Your aide will give me a brief summary of the meeting up to now." Chiyo said to Sesshomaru.

"Her name is Umeko, and you will direct your request to her." he snapped. Chiyo glared at him but was forced to speak directly to Umeko. Umeko, in a low voice, told her everything while Matsunaga drilled Sayuri on everything she knew about the warrior clans.

"What has Lord Sesshomaru decided to do, then?" Chiyo asked at last. "I have heard what you are proposing, and while I believe it to be the ridiculous and fanciful undertaking of an impetuous youth, the final choice has been placed in your inexperienced hands."

"What would you do, then?" Sesshomaru retorted. I am ice, he thought, trying to hold his temper in check.

"I would have the warriors we have here train the females. Sayuri could, perhaps, instruct them in how to teach and train females, but the job would ultimately fall to our warriors."

"And then the females would be as bad as the rest of your army," Sayuri snorted. Chiyo shot a glare at her.

"You overestimate your ability as a warrior. We have not been defeated as long as anyone can remember."

"Except all those times that we've lost to the neko youkai," Sayuri shot back. "The only thing we have going for us is brute strength and large numbers, and both of those can be countered more easily than you think."

"What are you talking about?" Chiyo asked disdainfully. Sayuri opened her mouth to reply, but Matsunaga interrupted.

"There is talk of two largest neko clans, Blood Claw and Gold Eye, joining forces. The neko are all skilled fighters, and with the strength of two clans, they could launch a devastating attack against our own clan." he informed them.

"And that's why my father wants the females trained to fight. There aren't any more inu clans we could join with, and he's trying to increase our numbers." Sesshomaru said slowly. Matsunaga nodded.

"The negotiations between Blood Claw and Gold Eye could take months, which is why this is so important. We don't have much time."

"And that's why I can't allow you to implement these foolish plans." Chiyo said. Sesshomaru and Umeko started to talk at once, but Sayuri hushed them.

"They might be your only chance at fighting the neko youkai off." They rounded on her.

"What are you talking about?" Sesshomaru demanded.

"I can't train your females in that amount of time. I could only give them the most basic training by then, nowhere near enough to send them into battle." Sesshomaru slammed his fist down on the table, splintering the wood.

"Damnit to the nine hells and back!" he snarled. "Are you saying it's impossible, then?" Sayuri met his stormy amber gaze steadily with her mismatched eyes.

"I could train a small group of talented females to fight well. Not many."

Sesshomaru clenched his fist until his claws cut into his skin. He ignored it, thinking furiously.

"Sayuri." he said at last. "Go and pick out your group of females. Test them however you want and choose whomever you believe to be fit. From this moment on, you are acting on the authority of the royal family."

He walked over to his desk and reached into a small, hidden compartment, pulling out a medallion with the crest of royalty and handing it to Sayuri. "This will be proof that you are. Take this to my father and he will see to it that you have an aide to assist you." She took it from him and hung it around her neck.

"Matsunaga. Contact any and every mercenary group who would work for us. For every female who does not learn to fight, hire two mercenaries."

"But Lord Sesshomaru-?" Matsunaga protested. Sesshomaru sighed inwardly. Ever since Matsunaga had heard of the females warriors, he had been…very interested. He pored over the ancient scrolls for any mention of them and spoke endlessly with Sayuri whenever he had the chance.

"There are too many risks in the plan, Matsunaga; we cannot afford to gamble on this slim of a chance."

"You sound like Chiyo," Matsunaga growled under his breath, just low enough so the bitch couldn't hear them.

"Did you hear Sayuri? She says that at best, you would return with one warrior, and even that senario is highly unlikely." Sesshomaru replied in an equally low voice.

"She also said that it was our only chance." Matsunaga argued. Their two gazes met for a moment, then Matsunaga straightened and raised his head proudly.

"My Lord Sesshomaru," he said formally, "I wish to make my Warrior's Request."

Sesshomaru froze. The Warrior's Request. He was obliged, as Matsunaga's lord, to grant him one request in return for Matsunaga's years of loyal service. If he denied the request, it was the same as calling Matsunaga worthless, the greatest insult to a warrior in the service of a lord, and Matsunaga would take his own life. _Matsunaga...dammit, don't do this…_

And he knew exactly what Matsunaga was going to ask for.

"What is your request?" he asked quietly.

"I wish to undertake this journey to the land of warriors, and attempt to bring one back to train our females. On my honor and my life, I will see this mission carried out."

Chiyo sputtered. "Surely you are not…"

Sesshomaru fixed him with a stare. "Request granted, warrior. Who will see to your affairs while you are gone?"

"Umeko has the training plans we have drawn up. She has already agreed to oversee my business while I am gone."

"I suppose you already have a team and ship picked out," Sesshoumau said ruefully. The older warrior nodded.

"I wish to depart as soon as possible." Matsunaga rose to his feet.

"Naturally. Go, then. May the gods watch over you."

They all watched silently as Matsunaga left the room, tall and proud. He stopped by Umeko, touching her face gently. She managed to smile at him, although Sesshomaru could see that her eyes were glittering with tears.

Chiyo broke the silence by gathering her things and heading for the door.

"I…must go give your father the report. Sesshomaru, I hope you realize what you've done. Acting on impulse, you've allowed your most experienced and valuable cabinet member to go off on some wild chase for a land that doesn't exist. Pray to the gods that he returns soon, because a foolish pup like you needs all the advisors he can get." With that, she left the room.

Sesshomaru and Umeko sat quietly for a while, lost in their own thoughts.

"Umeko…" the inu prince began hesitantly. She looked up at him, a tear trickling down her cheek. "Do you…do you think we did the right thing?"

"I think…we did what we had to." she finally answered. "Matsunaga is no fool; he would not be willing to risk so much if he did not have a good reason." Umeko paused for a moment, and then said more softly, "You are a good leader, Sesshomaru. This isn't an easy assignment, and you are handling it well. Don't let that bitch Chiyo make you doubt yourself." She bowed to him and left the room.

Somehow, Sesshomaru thought, everything doesn't seem like the disaster it was a minute ago.

* * *

This is not my style...but... ::sighs, puts away dignity, and begins groveling:: I need feedback! I really want to know what aspects of my writing style need to be improved and what people like. Please review...you'll make kitty happy! 


	4. Strange and Distant Lands

aChapter 4

Disclaimer: Oh, I am but a lowly fanfic writer! I do not own anything Inuyasha.

Author's Note: Javari and her author-didn't-do-any-research-and-made-it-all-up Amazon culture belong to me, and I reserve the right to hunt you down, rip out your internal organs, and toast them over an open fire if you for some bizarre reason feel the urge to rip me off.

_The Amazons_

Matsunaga and his warriors managed to land their boat on the shores of what they desperately hoped was the land of the warriors. By some ironic twist of fate, a terrible storm had blown up while they were at sea. Taro, who had been checking in on them, managed to hurtle them out of the storm and towards dry land.

There was a short stretch of beach, which quickly turned into forest. Matsunaga surveyed the land for a moment.

"Clear out this section of forest. Use the wood to repair the boat and set up a temporary camp. Eight of you in groups of two will scout out the area, never more than shouting distance from camp. Move out." He followed the men around, lending a hand wherever necessary and sweating it out with the best of them.

Within two days, they had cleared a large section of forest and were ready to stay there for days, even weeks, if necessary. All scouts had found no one else on the land, although they reported sounds of battle, dropped weapons, and recently used campsites.

On several occasions, they found their supplies rummaged through and various items missing; warriors would wake up to find themselves stripped of armor only to find said armor lying in a pile outside of their tent. Weapons went missing and would show up again in the strangest places…in the evening rice, embedded through firewood, or piled in a mound and half covered with sand.

But what was more unsettling that the missing items was the perpetual feeling of many pairs of eyes staring at him. More than once, Matsunaga had the creeping sensation of being watched, and many of the warriors complained of the same feeling, though they neither saw nor smelled another youkai.

As far as they could tell, they were perfectly alone.

This must be the right place, Matsunaga thought. But where are they? The good luck charm Umeko had given him was dangling from a silver chain around his neck. It was a pearl inscribed with the character for "fortune". He touched it gently, thinking of her, and praying to the gods for luck.

The way things are going…we're going to need a lot of that, he reflected.

"Good game, Teolan," Javari called out to one of her teammates, as she headed back to her den. The usual group of Ja'La'Hai players was disbanding after the latest round, laughing and talking about the game they had just played. Over to her left, a small group of players was reenacting a particularly exciting section, while another tried out a new move Teolan had introduced. At the sound of her voice, the other demon stopped and waited for her to catch up.

"And you, my friend! I suppose you're going to play next week, at the Festival of Fire and Light?" Teolan asked, grinning from ear to ear, despite the blood trickling from a cut over her eye. "I know Santyel is playing…" Teolan teased her. Javari felt her face redden, although it would be hard to see beneath the dirt and blood.

"Don't be silly. I would play even if he weren't." she replied, laughing.

"You know he would give you his kill in a moment," Teolan remarked, tickling Javari's legs with her tail and making the other demon laugh. "Why don't you just accept him into your den already?"

Javari shrugged. "I don't know…I'm just not ready yet."

"Pffft…ready? You're of age to take a mate."

"Just barely!" Javari protested. Teolan laughed.

"Go swim; you're a mess. Until we meet on the winding path." she said, and headed off for her own den. A swim did sound nice, Javari thought, changing her course for the river.

On the bank of the river, she stripped off her blood soaked clothes and dove in. The water stung the many cuts that were still healing, but in a few hours, she would be completely healed and ready for battle again…Ahh, I do love being a demon, she thought idly, scrubbing dirt off her arms and legs.

Once every inch of her was clean, from the tips of her pointed ears to her clawed feet, Javari jumped out of the river and walked over to where her clothes and weapons were.

Correction, where they _formerly _were, Javari thought. She spun around, flinging water droplets and heard cackling laughter. Javari sighed. "Maleel…I know you're there. Give me my clothes back." she said patiently. A fabulously colored bird perched in one of the trees cocked his head at her, and cawed. "You rascal, I see you! Get down here right now!" The bird cackled.

"Or you'll what?" he squawked, fluffing his brilliant feathers. Javari crouched, then sprang up into the tree next to him and tackled him off the branch. They landed in a heap, and then he tried to bite her. She wrapped her arms around his wings and pinned him down, despite his vigorous struggles.

"Where are my clothes, Maleel?" she demanded, shaking the bird as he cackled. Suddenly there was a burst of feathers, and she was no longer holding a bird, but a devilishly handsome boy, who wrapped his arms around her.

"Oh, Javari, I _knew_ you always felt the same way about me!" he laughed, as Javari pushed him off her with considerable more force than was necessary.

"Be serious, Maleel, I want my clothes." she said sternly. He only chuckled and turned into a bird again, and flew up to retrieve her clothes.

"Listen, Javari, they're playing a game tomorrow, and they wanted to know if you wanted to play." he said while she dressed. Frowning, she tied the wrap around her waist.

"I haven't heard of any game," Javari remarked, fastening her knife belt.

"It's…not an official game."

"Ah. Some people settling scores again?" she asked. He nodded. "Have they set the rules yet?"

"It's practically a free-for-all…A two nighter; all weapons allowed run along this strip of land that they're marking tonight. It runs from the coast to the boundary of one of the inner villages." He told her, grinning. "It's going to be great, Vari. You gonna come?"

She returned his smile with a smirk of her own, flashing fangs. "I haven't been on a run in a while. When does it start?"

"Noon, tomorrow, at the Cobra village." Maleel replied.

"Cobra village? Ohhh…don't tell me that Cobra and Serpent are going at it AGAIN." Javari grumbled. "They're named after the same damned animal." He shrugged.

"Something about Serpent stealing Cobra's people," he explained. The demons who were bonded to a village took energy and life from the people there and in return protected and helped them. For one demon to be luring people away from another demon's village was a blatant power play, as well as a considerable insult. Cobra was challenging Serpent to a run, and the winner would take all.

Javari pulled her hair back and tied it up. "Then I'll see you tomorrow at noon. Thanks for telling me."

"Anything for you," he snickered. "But try to keep your clothes on next time." He yelped on the word time as Javari swatted him.

"Fly away, bird, or I'll eat you for dinner." she teased, playfully extending her claws and batting at him. He jumped up, turning into the demon-bird midair, and flew up out of her reach.

"Ha, you old maid, you can't catch me!" he cawed, flapping higher.

"What did you just call me?" she yowled, her tail lashing. "I am _not_ an old maid!" But he was long gone. Javari scowled. Man, you don't mate the second you come of age and you're an old maid already, she thought. She dropped down on all fours and grew her jaguar pelt.

"Pah! I don't need a mate anyway!" she muttered, bounding off in the direction of her den.

She felt her village through the bond that connected her to them. They were doing well, healthy and strong, and there was a ready supply of energy for her to draw on if she needed to. A long time ago, the humans and the demons had fought. When the demons had won, they claimed different villages as part of their territory. Although they thought of the humans as no more than a quick meal, once a demon claimed a village as his/her territory, s/he would fight to the death to defend it against other demons or invading humans.

Over time, the relationship between the demons and the villagers evolved. The demon would form a psychic bond to the village, a bond that enabled it to draw upon the strength and energy of the villagers. It protected the villagers from enemies and helped them in battle, while the grateful villagers provided it with food in the form of sacrificial animals, and worshipped a totem they erected in their guardian's honor. And everybody benefited.

Except, Javari thought, when stupid, greedy snakes like Calas Serpent try to steal a village from someone else. She padded along the jungle, pushing through the lush foliage until she reached her den.

The instant she got there, she knew a stranger had been there. She sniffed the air-the scent of a young male, spicy and strong, lingered. Santyl.

Javari cautiously approached the entrance to her den. He had left her a freshly killed pig. A courting gift. If she had a human mouth, she would have smiled. Everyone was right-he would be a good mate, if she chose to accept him into her den.

Maybe someday, Javari thought, curling up on a pile of leaves. She yawned and closed her eyes…

…only to open them again when she heard the sound of padded feet outside her den, creeping closer and closer. Javari sniffed the air, but she couldn't smell anything besides the foliage and dirt around her. She put her head back down and pretended to be asleep; listening as the intruder snuck in the back entrance of her den and softly came over to where she was sleeping. Small paws touched her ears and her fur, and a sudden weight settled on her side.

Javari rolled over, hissing, and trapped the intruder beneath her. The monkey squealed in terror.

"Damn it, Lia," Javari said, returning to her human form. The monkey skittered away and seconds later, a young woman appeared.

"You were asleep; I didn't want to wake you up!" the demoness protested. Javari snorted.

"Well, you almost gave me a heart attack. I couldn't recognize your scent at all." she replied. Lia held up a handful of leaves.

"Nechua. It hides your scent completely." she handed a few to Javari, who sniffed them.

"They smell good," she commented. Lia smiled and settled down on the heap of leaves, ready to go to sleep.

"Monkey! Out of my bed!" Javari said in mock outrage. She shifted back into jaguar form as Lia became a monkey again, and the two of them curled up in a furry pile and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning dawned bright and clear—perfect for the run. Lia had already left by the time Javari awoke, and had left some fruit for her by way of thanks. The monkey demon had been living on and off with Javari for a while, and her coming and going was about as predictable as the wind, although she was a damn good Ja'La'Hai player.

Javari became human long enough to eat the fruit, and dress herself for the run. A knife strapped to each leg, her sword tied across her back, and her bone knife in the sheath at her waist. She braided her hair back and fastened the tooth necklace around her neck to bring her luck, and then she was ready.

When she arrived at the village where the run was to begin, most of the other players were milling around. A large village, it was evidently very prosperous, judging by the

numerous houses and beautifully constructed totem to Cobra in the center of the village. Most of the villagers had remained inside their huts but a brave few peered out at the crowd of demon warriors. Looking around, Javari saw Tartagal, one of her female ex-teachers, comparing bone knives with Camiri, a demoness who had been a novice trainee the same time as Javari. Santyl was off talking to Cobra and Maleel. When Cobra caught sight of her and waved her over.

"Javari," Santyl said, tipping his head slightly to her, as handsome as ever with his jet black hair and warm caramel skin. She returned the gesture, and ruffled Maleel's hair in a way he hated, then turned her attention back to Cobra.

Bauru Cobra was serpentine even in his human form. His gray-green eyes had snake-like pupils and he was completely bald. She could see the patterns of scales on his shoulders and arms.

"It is an honor to have you with us on this run," he said, hissing slightly on the s's. "It has been some time since we played Ja'La'Hai together."

She grinned at the demon. "Those were good games, my friend. Why did you stop playing?" He scowled.

"Not of my own choice, my feline friend. I have had my hands full dealing with Serpent and his nonsense. I did not have time to play Ja'La'Hai and take care of my village, who decided to war with another, stronger village."

"They must have great faith in their spirit protector, then." Javari replied. Her words brought a smile to his face.

"Thank you," Bauru said softly. "I must go now, for the run is about to begin. I look forward to seeing you on the trail." He turned and headed toward the starting line.

"Did you enjoy my gift?" Santyl asked Javari, obsidian eyes staring into hers. Maleel mumbled something about having to go and left.

"Oh…yes, yes I did. Thank you." she stammered, feeling like an idiot. "Um," there was a pause, while Javari scrambled for words while trying not to stare at Santyl's lips. "You could stay next time, and share the kill."

He smiled, showing fangs. "I'd like that."

Javari returned the smile, suddenly feeling less awkward.

"I'll see you on the run." Santyl said, taking her hand and pressing it to his cheek.

"Until we meet on the winding path," she replied, and watched him walk off. He had the smooth, graceful gait of a warrior and a nice…tail. Javari ignored Maleel, who was smirking at her, and headed over to the large group.

"To the line!" one of the moderators, an ocelot demoness, yelled. The players gathered at the line, pulling out weapons, stretching and warming up their muscles.

The run was a challenge, usually between two demons, but occasionally between two clans of demons. The object of the run was for the two challengers defend their ball from the other players. Each challenger had two friends who fought with him or her. The first one to make it to the end of the run with their ball was the winner.

The course for this run had been carefully marked ahead of time with glowing balls of light. It started at this village, wound its way up through the lush jungle, and finally ended at the coastline.

Though, simple enough in theory, it is amazingly hard in real life. Javari grinned as the moderator called for starting positions. Bauru's companions, Aráxa and Marília, stood directly behind him, as did Calas's companions, Amambai and Jatal. Bauru and his rival, Calas, were in the front of the pack, each holding a ball studded in jewels and gold.

"Warriors at the ready…" the moderator shouted. "Go!"

The pack quickly separated into two groups, the attacking team and the end team. The attacking team would be constantly harrying the two challengers as they made their way down the run, while the end team would be waiting for them at the last leg of the run. Javari was in the attacking team.

She leapt away from the group, and bounded up into the trees, jumping from branch to branch, trying to get ahead of the pack. She could see other demons with the same idea above and around her, while below them Bauru and Calas battled with the rest of the players.

Javari paused on a branch to watch the battle. Aráxa and Marília, a pair of eagle demonesses, were doing an excellent job of keeping many of the attacking team out of Bauru's way; Amambai and Jatal did not fare quite as well. Bauru, whose preferred weapon was a whip, was fending off a pair of monkey demons while keeping Calas on his toes. There was a yelp of pain from one of the monkey demons as she fell out of the pack. Immediately another demon leapt down from the trees to take her place, and the fighters advanced down the path.

The first day was more skirmish fighting than anything else, as both competitors tried to cover as much ground as they could before the heavy fighting started, which would be about halfway through the run. Javari and her teammates took turns harassing the two demons, quick hit-and-run bouts of fighting only meant to tire them for the real battles. As night fell, the attacking demons found a place to rest and regroup, as well as plan for the upcoming fighting the next day. Bauru's and Calas's friends guarded them against further attacks while they slept and roused them when the sun rose on the second day of the run.

The two demons had barely drawn their weapons when the first attacks came. And the run started again, with Bauru and Calas fighting the pack and racing each other at the same time. Javari, who had resumed watching from the trees, kept up with the thick knot of fighters moving rapidly down the trail.

It was then that Calas suddenly broke out from the group and began running. Bauru yelled his outrage but was too engaged in the fight to follow his rival. Aráxa was too busy with Amambai to help him, but Marília was already fighting to open a path for her friend. Calas laughed and sped off, pausing briefly to disarm and stun two demons standing in his way with a quick blow to their necks. It looked like he would have a clear run, at least for a while. Javari gritted her teeth and followed him from the trees. But before she could drop on him, there was a blur of movement and something crashed into Calas, knocking him down.

It was Santyl, in jaguar form. He was huge, even for a demon-jaguar, and Calas circled him warily, knife in one hand, ball in the other. They both feinted once or twice at each other, and then Santyl lunged and scored a long gash on Calas's arm. The snake demon howled in pain, and spat poison at Santyl. The jaguar demon hissed back at him, baring powerful fangs.

Calas did the smart thing and ran. Santyl dashed after him, only to be caught by one of Calas's friends, a river-snake demon named Amambai. Aráxa was lying at the base of a tree, stunned or worse. Calas's other friend, Jatal, was around in the trees somewhere…Javari scanned the area and saw him; he was holding off two demons who clearly wanted to confront Calas.

She jumped, meaning to land in front of Calas…and was tackled, mid-air, by the bird-demon Vilhena. Javari didn't even have time to wonder before she fell, crashing through branches on her way down. She twisted sharply, extending her claws, and managed to catch hold of a large, sturdy branch. Slowly, she pulled herself up. Vilhena was circling around, getting ready for a second pass.

Javari's eyes narrowed. Attacking players didn't fight amongst themselves, only with the challengers and their friends, and Calas was only supposed to have two helpers. Off in the distance, she could see the demons up in the trees fighting with Calas's people.

Vilhena swooped in shrieking, aiming for Javari's eyes with her sharp talons. Javari yanked out the bone knife and waited for her to get close enough…Just as Vilhena's talons gashed her arm, she swung the knife straight into the demon's wing. There was a sickening crack, and a scream from Vilhena, and then the bird-demon was falling down, down to the forest floor.

_Where's Calas?_ Javari thought, looking around for the cheating snake demon. He was far ahead on the trail, unimpeded by anyone. The end team looked greatly reduced, as many of them had gone back to fight with Calas, only to be met by one of his helpers. Bauru, despite all the resistance, was not too far behind…He could still catch up, Javari estimated.

First things first…Calas. Javari examined the gash on her arm briefly. Thankfully, it wasn't her knife arm. She tore some cloth off her skirt and tied it around the wound to hold it while it healed. Crouching, she prepared to spring…when a strong hand clamped down on her shoulder. Javari whipped around, knife at ready, and found that it was Santyl.

"If you go after Calas, I will cover for you," he said, wiping blood off of his chin. There was a cut across his nose and he had various other injuries but otherwise, he looked fine. Seeing her gaze travel over his wounds, he smiled. "Amambai put up quite a fight, but it looks worse than it really is."

There was shouting and the sounds of battle below: Calas had met the end party. Javari looked down.

"Good luck," he whispered, and gently touched his lips to her face. Javari felt that damned blush creeping across her face and smiled.

"You too." she said quietly, and darted off through the trees, all the while keeping an eye on Calas. The end party, fueled by anger at his cheating ways, was putting up a spectacular fight even with Jatal helping him. Javari landed on a branch and watched the fight, readying to spring on Calas.

Something slammed into the back of her head and she cried out in pain. For a moment, she swayed with dizziness and almost lost her balance. Javari growled and closed her eyes, drawing strength from her village. Turning around, she saw one of Calas's people balanced on the branch next to her.

"Impressive, you still kept your balance." the demoness said, twirling the staff in her hand. "It won't save you, though." She whipped the staff around and the ends flew off, to reveal gleaming blades. Javari's answer was to reach back and pull out her sword, and hold it on guard as the demoness approached, still twirling the bladed staff.

A furious roar echoed through the jungle, making both warriors pause. Santyl came flying through the branches, now in jaguar form, to smash into the demoness and knock her off the branch. He went down after her, slashing and fighting with her as they fell.

"Santyl!" Javari cried, jumping down after them. She landed soundly on a branch and crouched, trying to see where they had fallen.

And then realized she was not alone on the branch.

Calas stood at the other hand, covered in blood.

For a long moment, they eyed each other. Then, slowly, Javari stood.

"I won't let you pass." she snarled. He laughed.

"All I have to do is make it a little bit farther—then it'll be over, and I will have won." Calas said coolly. "Get out of my way, cat, I have more friends up here than-"

"They're all busy with their own fights, Calas. If Santyl or one of the others hasn't taken them down yet, Bauru and his group will have caught up by now." Javari cut him off, smirking. "You haven't won yet."

"'Yet' would be the key word there," Calas retorted, but there was fear in his eyes now. "That voice…you're Javari, aren't you?" She nodded, and watched the fear increase tenfold. Then his eyes narrowed. "I've come too far to let some bitch stop me now!"

He grabbed a vine and slid back down to the ground, and took off running. Javari followed him, steadily gaining.

Then she saw the end line, the beach. He was much too close for comfort, but what could she do? He wouldn't actually confront her; she'd have to think of something else. Javari sped up until she was practically on his heels, watching the ball glitter in his filthy grasp.

The ball! If he didn't have that ball when he crossed the line, he wouldn't win. She gathered herself, and leapt…over him. Javari landed in front of him and skidded to a halt. Switching her knife to her off hand, she lunged at him.

He blocked her and brought his own knife down on her arm. It glanced painfully off the bone, and she screamed and leapt away. He sprinted the last distance over the end line, laughing at her, and raised the ball high into the air to show his victory.

Or at least, he raised the hand that used to have the ball into the air. Over to the side, nursing her wound, Javari held the ball.

"You…bitch…" Calas growled. "I am going to _kill_ you!" He suddenly shifted to his other form, a monstrous snake, and came charging after her.

Javari scrambled to her feet and ran. Behind her, she could hear the demon crashing through the bushes. She spotted a good sized tree and climbed up it so fast she was practically flying, and finally rested on a high branch. Her arm was now bleeding from two wounds, and she was beginning to grow faint with blood loss.

The tree shook. Javari glanced down to see the snake winding its way up the tree, eyes glinting with rage. She ripped another strip off her skirt to bandage her newest gash, keeping a wary eye on the snake as it slithered higher and higher. The instant the wound was tied up, she was on her feet and running again, leaping through the branches while Calas relentlessly pursued her.

He almost caught up to her once; he lunged and managed to nip her ankle. She felt the burn of his poison as it entered her system and jumped faster and farther than before, with fear giving her that extra boost.

Javari leaped for the next branch…and went sailing into empty space. Flailing her arms and legs desperately, she looked around and saw that there was a clearing, where there had once been forest. There was nothing to stop her fall, and Javari watched the ground rushing up to meet her.

She landed painfully and rolled. Gasping with exhaustion and pain, she looked up—to see a tall warrior standing over her, staring at her with the strangest look on his face.

And then something hard hit her on the back of the head, and all she knew was darkness.

"Lord Matsunaga…_what_ is that?" the inuyoukai asked, indicating the thing that Matsunaga was carrying in his arms.

"_That_ is what we came all this way for…and it just fell out of the sky in front of us." the general answered. "I want to sail immediately. Has anyone seen Taro?"

"Yes, he came by earlier, and left a minor wind youkai to guide us," another youkai answered.

"Good." Matsunaga said. Raising his voice, he yelled, "Men, we have what we came for. We're going home!" There were cheers from his warriors, as they hurried about, packing up camp and preparing to leave.

Matsunaga looked down at the creature in his arms. She was covered in dirt, sap, and blood, but to his eyes, she could not have been more beautiful. This, he thought, is the female who will save the inuyoukai.

A few hours later, they were sailing for their homeland. Matsunaga had the female locked in one of the carrying cages meant for prisoners. They had cleaned it up and put a mat and blankets in there, to make it a bit nicer, and four warriors kept guard around her at all times.

Not that it looked like she would be trying to escape. She had spent her first waking hours violently sick, much to the disgust of the soldier who had to clean it up, and then fallen asleep. Matsunaga, concerned that she was seriously ill, had the healer take a look at her. He informed the general that she was fighting off battle exhaustion and a powerful poison, but with her healing factors, she should be fine. He prescribed a sedative and recommended that they keep her asleep.

And so she slept, all the way back to Japan. She was plagued by nightmares and often thrashed in her cage, crying and mumbling in a foreign language. It took them a while to figure out how to feed her without letting her totally wake, but once they got the hang of it, the warriors agreed to take turns feeding the "kitten", as they'd affectionately dubbed her.

They lessened the amount of sedative that they gave her, so she was awake enough to eat. She was very groggy, and at first spat out the food, but eventually, hunger took over and she ate heartily. With the presence of a female on board, the atmosphere of the whole ship changed: the men were less rowdy and much calmer. The ones with families back home secretly snuck into the holding room to tell her stories they told their pups, and she seemed soothed by their tales.

She's turning my crew into a bunch of women, Matsunaga despaired, watching the men patch one of the blankets she had torn with her sharp claws.

"Land!" the lookout called, and there was cheering throughout the ship. Matsunaga heaved a sigh of relief, and relaxed against the side of the ship. At last…his dream was about to be realized…

"My lord?" one of his warriors approached him. "My lord…she's escaped."

"WHAT?"

Down in the holding room…

"She must have been getting used to the sedative, Lord Matsunaga. We think it was a combination of that, and Yasashiku here—" the warrior who was explaining jerked his finger towards an ashamed-looking inuyoukai. "forgot to give her the sedative this morning. When we found the cage, the lock was smashed. She overpowered her guards and escaped…to…well, we don't know. We've searched the whole ship and we haven't found her."

Matsunaga bit his tongue to keep from letting loose every swear word he could think of. "The whole ship?"

"Yes, my lord, from end to end. Not a trace."

There was a heavy silence…broken by a loud splash.

"My lord!" another warrior came up. "She jumped into the sea!"

"Damn, cats can't swim!" Matsunaga said angrily. "Send out men to get her." He followed them back up to the deck, where a crowd had gathered watching the water.

"That's her," one of the warriors pointed out to Matsunaga unnecessarily. A great golden cat was swimming steadily towards land, far ahead of the boat following her.

"Where is she going?" someone wondered out loud.

"Does it really matter? The point is that we are supposed to present this warrior to Prince Sesshomaru upon our return, and now we've lost her." Matsunaga snapped. "As soon as we land, I want everyone looking for her. Groups of three—I don't want to underestimate her strength. And don't return until you've found her. I will go explain this….mistake…" he paused to glare at Yasashiku. "to Prince Sesshomaru."

"But my lord general, you can't return like this!" a warrior protested. "It is failure; he will execute you!"

"I staked my life on this mission, and I have failed. I must pay whatever price my prince asks of me for this failure." Matsunaga said quietly. He held up a hand to stop Yasashiku's apologies. "I alone will bear responsibility for this. No one else is to blame."

They all silently watched the cat drag herself up on land and lope off.

Matsunaga idly wondered if the pain in his heart could be any greater—it was the ultimate dishonor: he had failed his mission, his country, and his prince. He could only hope that their other plans had gone well, and that there was still hope for them.

These two sections are pretty choppy. They move from event to event with no transition or much of a concept of time. Smooth it out a bit. Don't slow it down too much, just make it more fluid 

"Lord Sesshomaru…things are going, to be blunt, terribly." Sayuri announced, throwing herself into a chair. "I request that you remove me from this assignment before I strangle your army." Sesshomaru glanced up at her from his paperwork.

"Are they really that bad?" he asked. Sayuri snorted.

"The females? No. Your _male_ warriors? So help me, the next condescending remark I hear, I'll castrate that—" He stopped her tirade with a gesture.

"Sayuri, if they're that bad, beat some sense into them. I give you my permission." Her eyes lit up, and an evil smile crossed her face.

"With pleasure." she rose from the chair and headed towards the door. "By the way—have you heard from Matsunaga?" Sesshomaru smiled. "Gods, you have! Has he returned yet? Was he successful?"

The smile faded, to be replaced by a look of worry. "I don't know…all I got was a message saying he had returned, and he needed to speak with me immediately."

Sayuri bit her lip. "That…sounds most foreboding." Sesshomaru nodded. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a familiar clank of armor. The door slid open, and Matsunaga stood there.

"Matsunaga, it's good to see you again." Sesshomaru began, but seeing the grim look on the general's face, he stopped. "What happened?" he asked, sitting back in his chair.

And Matsunaga told him.


End file.
